James Bond fans everywhere took notice when a Korean desgin student delivered a blueprint for a device that allows you to breathe underwater.

According to the Smithsonian, the artificial gills, named Triton, capture oxygen gas in water, storing it in a tiny compressed air tank. The creator, Jeabyun Yeon, calls Triton a future product, and his website claims:

“To breathe under water, we must learn how to use complicated oxygen respirator. If we can stay under water for a long time through an easy way, many changes will occur in our marine lifestyle. TRITON is a very convenient oxygen respirator concept. It allows us to breathe under water for a long time by simply biting it. It also does not require the skill of breathing in and out while biting mouth piece like conventional respirator. It is a portal oxygen respirator for breathing under water as if being on ground by simply biting it.”

Yeon describes the device a Portal Oxygen Respirator that extracts oxygen from water through a filter. This filter has extremely fine holes which are smaller than water molecules. Triton uses a small, powerful micro compressor that compresses oxygen and stores it in a tiny tank. The micro battery, 30-time smaller than batteries we use today, powers the micro compressor. Yeon claims it’s anext-generation technology which can charge 1,000 times faster.

this could be great for snorkellers. As long as you stayed within 10 meters of the surface, you could stay down for awhile without worrying about equipment failure. If it failed, you could just pop up to the surface. Any deeper though, and you’d be contending with the bends it you had to pop up in an emergency.

About Gold Medal Mel Stewart

MEL STEWART Jr., aka Gold Medal Mel, won three Olympic medals at the 1992 Olympic Games. Mel's best event was the 200 butterfly. He is a former World, American, and NCAA Record holder in the 200 butterfly.As a writer/producer and sports columnist, Mel has contributed to Yahoo Sports, Universal Sports, …